Collapsible container and dispensing holder therefor



July 12, 1960 A. A. MOORE 2,944,706

COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINERAND DISPENSING HOLDER THEREFOR Filed April 29, 1957 INVENTOR.

This invention relates to collapsible containers and atent i operating holder useful in dispensing the con-tent thereof under conveniently controlled conditions.

' Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved collapsible container sealed filled withfluent contents 'in' such manner that the severing of an end portion thereof provides a convenient dispensing opening.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a simple one-piecedispensing holder adapted to be held in the'users hand with a portion of a collapsible container assembled thereto exposed for the application of dispensing pressure from the clenching action.

more particularly to an-improved container of this type designed for use with a simple and effective dispensing holder, and to a new method of charging collapsible containers.

It has been common practice for many years to package fluent materials of various types in collapsible tubular containers. It is desirable that the fluent contents be dispensed under controlled conditions and in such manner that the issuing stream can be used in'the manner and quantities required for the purposes at hand. While it is possible to dispense the contents from such containers by hand, this is unsatisfactory, inconvenient, and uneconomical for many purposes. Mechanically operated dis: pensing holders have been devised for use with containers filled with caulking compounds, putty and the like fluent materials. Although such holders have served a useful purpose they have many shortcomings and disadvantages which it is the, purpose of this invention to overcome. In general the devices referred to are bulky, heavy and diflicult to manipulate. A particular disadvantage to the small home users of fluent material packaged in flexible containers is the high cost ofdispensing holdersof the types heretofore provided, their costexceed-ing that of the fluent material container by several times; j

The present invention avoids the shortcoming referred toabove and others by providing a specially designed, in-

. expensive, collapsible container andja simple one-piece holder having a dispensing nozzle at one end. The'tW 0 piece assembly is adapted to'be held'in the users hand and is so formed that the users fingers are elfective to collapse the container and dispense the contents precisely as required for the work at hand. The tip end'of the container; when severed,'prov ides a discharge opening positioned to register with the nozzle part of the holder with the result that the contents can be dispensed directlyinto a crevice or other irregularity to be filled as the dispensing holder is manipulated advantageouslyto direct the material into the crevice. 1

Another feature of the invention is'a specially designed against one another and heat sealing them together by passage of a heated iron or betweenlieated rollers in; accordance with knowns'ealing techniques; Any. desired-f number of. separate units can bercharged and sealed along a given length of the tubular material following which the,

units are severedfromone' another along the wide seams between charges. If: the-seams are formed} at an angle -to;

the axis of the tubes, as is contemplated by the prese ntinforming a feature of the invention V V Accordingly it is a primary object of this invention to provide an improved dispensingcontainer and a. c0'-.

vention', the resulting container is appropriately shaped t0 -fit snugly Within the'nozzle of the "onepiece holder-also:

erly assembled thereto; and

Another object of the invention is the provision of a simple and inexpensive container charged with prepared crevice filling material ready for distribution into crevices through a restricted opening formed by severing the tip end of the container.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through the holder and including a dot-and-dash line showing of the position occupied by a collapsible container when prop- Figure 3 is a side elevational view of a series of connected collapsible containers before separation into separate charged units.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, there is shown a dispensing device designated'generally v10;for use with collapsible containers formed from thin rigid material such as sheet metal but preferably from molded plastic material; Holder 10 has a main body 11 crescent'shaped in a cross-section and'having-a diameter conveniently grasped in the hand of a user. Viewed from one aspect, main body 11 might be described as tubular with the upper half cut away along a combination straight and curved contour line indicatedat 12. One end of the main body has formed integral therewith a dispensing nozzle 13 of the general configuration illustrated and provided at its pointed forward end with a small discharge port 14. While as herein shown this port is generally circular, it will be understood that it may have various shapes depending on the material being dispensedand the nature'of the crevice or surface to which the material is being dispensed. For example,

-it-rriay be desired to dispense a thin ribbon of material in which case port 14 will have a narrow broad opening corresponding to the width and thickness of ribbon desired v 'to' be dispensedwith the wider axis of the discharge port 14 suitably disposed for the application of the discharging, ribbon of fluent material;

"The dispensing devicev lllralso features: integral means positioned to. project into the' side of acollapsible cone tainer as pressure is appliedto its. contents, suchindentation being eifectivejt'o resist rearward moveme'n't offthe container-out of 3 nozzle 13. Onepreferred method of f accomplishingith'is endf ornprises'i a hoodf15- overlyin the rear e dbrnoz 1e 1sinthe rrianner illustrated in Fi'gures 'l' and 2 with lip '16'spaced-sufliciently close tothe 7 --'underlying walls of thejholder body as toindent the side]; wall of the container; *It'will therefore be evident that'as pressure is applied to a-collapsible container supportedinl the holder 'thefluent contents will expandtheQend ofthe, tube against the interior walls. of nozzle. 13 locking thi} container in such manner that the small dispensing open-1 f Patented July 12, 1960.

ing 18 in registry with nozzle port 14 is held in tight sealing engagement therewith.

While the described hood 15 and lip 16 provide a con venient and eflfective arrangement for locking the collapsible container releasably sealed within nozzle 13 it will be understood that other arrangements are equally, effective. For example, the dispensing holder may be formed with ridges or ribs 19 projecting upwardly from its inner wall and extending transversely of its longitudinal axis. Two transverse ribs 19 of this character are illustrated in Figure 2 and may be used alone or in combination with hood 15 and its lip 16 to hold container assembled in the dispensing device.

A further important feature of the invention is a collapsible tubular container designated generally 20 and preferably formed from thin pliable material such as one of the many plastic materials now available, a vinyl plastic being found particularly suitable. This material is preferably formed into an endless, seamless tube of a diameter corresponding to that of the main body of the dispensing holder. The method provided by this invention providing sealed containers from long tubes of this material includes sealing one end of the tube in any well known manner, a particularly convenient and effective method comprising the application of heat transversely across collapsed wall portions of the tube to effect fusing of the contacting walls together without adversely affecting the strength or thickness of the tube wall. Paste or fluent material isthen charged into the opposite open end of'the tube to fill a section thereof adjacent its closed end. At this point the course of procedure is optional when filling the tube with certain fluent materials but not optional when filling with others. Thus if the fluent material is of a type which does not cling tenaciously to the interior walls of the tubing, the contents may be pinched off as the tube walls are pressed together following which an effective heat-fused seam 21 may be provided across the tube in known manner. When filling with other materials this procedure is not feasible because the material clings to thetube sidewall. In this case it is necessary to fill a section of the. tubingand then seal off the tubing immediately above the. top of the contents before filling the next higher section. In this latter instance filling is accomplished by alternately filling and sealing a section before filling the next section.

A particular feature of thefilling operation of the tubing to provide containers usable with the dispensing device illustrated in Figures 1 and:2 comprises forming the transverse seals 21 at a sharp angle to the longitudinal axis of the tube, the, inclination corresponding generally with the inclination of the end wall of dispensing nozzle 13. This seam is made sufficiently broad to permit servering of the seam along the median line 22 to provide separate sealed containers 23, the severing being performed with a sharp knife, scissors or the like.

Once the containers have been severed from the main body of the tubing the pointed ends 25 are found to incline naturally downwardly away from the main body of the tube in a mannerconforming with the contour of nozzle 13 asshown in Figure 2. Initially and before severing along lines 22 corners 26 opposite corners 25 are inclined outwardly also. However, once the containers are severed from the long tube, corners 26 tend to disappear leaving corners 25 inclined away'from the body of the tube.

Although the collapsible container may be filled with any fluent material which it is desired to dispense, one material contemplated for, use with the present invention comprises a prepared crack-filling cornpound prepared from gypsum powder and an oil-based vehicle which dries quickly upon exposure to the open air. This material, or any other suitable fluent material, may be dispensed from thesealed containersusing theholder 10 by sever ing the tip 18.from one of the pointed; ends 25 of the container and then. assembling it Withmdispensing holder. 10in the manner illustrated-in Figure 2, w i

The dispensing and spreading of the material is conveniently performed by holding the device in the hand and applying the slight pressure to exposed portions of the container necessary to dispense the contents at a desired rate as nozzle port 14 is maneuvered over the area or crevice to be filled with the discharging fluent material. If the controlling pressure is applied from the rear end of the containerforwardly towards nozzle .13, as it conveniently may be, the forward portion ofthe dispensing device remains fully inflated for more convenient handling. Furthermore the unused contents are confined to the forward end of the container. If the entire contents are not required, the container can be removed from the dispensing device and the container folded back upon itself to seal the discharge port 18 until ready for use.

It is pointed out in particular that during the dispensing operation the pressure applied to the contents acts to expand the forward end of the container walls outwardly against hood' 15 and about the inwardly projecting holding ribs 19-19, with the result that the forward end of the container remains fully inflated against the walls of the nozzle. For this reason the contents cannot creep between the walls of the container and those of nozzle 13. Nor is it possible for the container to become displaced from the dispensing holder. It is also pointed out that the nozzle tip of the holder 10 may be formed in various contours and that it may lie below, above or'flush with the lower surface of the main body 11 as found most suitable for a particular use of thedispenser.

While the particular dispensing device and method of making collapsible containers for use therewith herein shown and disclosed in detail is fully capable of attaining the objectsand providing the advantages hereinbefore stated, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the presently preferred embodiments of the invention and that no limitations are intended to the details of construction'or design herein shown other than as defined in the appended claims.

I claim: Y 7

1. A dispensing device for use in dispensing a stream of fiuentplastic material from a collapsible container mounted therein and for distributing the dispensed stream, said device comprising a trough-like holder of relatively rigid thin material open along one side andshaped atone end to conform substantially with the endof a collapsible tubular container sealed at the end thereof at an angle to the longitudinal axis and to provide a converging nozzle having a small discharge opening at its tip to receive the container contents from the foremost tip end of the container, said device being adapted to support a' col lapsible container charged with plastic material to be dispensed with the discharge end ofthe container pressed" against the inner wall of said nozzle adjacent-the dispensing tip thereof, said device further being adapted to be grasped within the hand with the-usors' fingerspositioned to apply pressure through the open side thereof to dis- 3. A dispensingdevice as defined in clairn 1 wherein the larger end of said converging dispensing nozzle is provided with means projecting inwardly from the edge thereoftoward the opposite side of the nozzle and effec tive to' engage the discharge end of a. dispensing containerto hold'the same releasably assembledwithin-said nozzle.

angle for directing discharging plastic into a crevice or against a surface to be coated therewith.

5. A dispensing device as defined in claim 1 formed of molded plastic material.

6. A dispensing device as defined in claim 1 including inwardly projecting means on the'interior wall of said device adapted to indent a collapsible container crosswise thereof as pressure is applied to dispense its contents and effective in holding a container against displacement from said nozzle.

7. A dispensing device for use in dispensing and distributing the fluent contents of an elongated collapsible container, said device comprising a one-piece elongated hollow holder of generally crescent shape in cross section and adapted to be grasped within the hand for the application of pressure against a collapsible tubular container supported therewithin, said holder having a converging dispensing nozzle at one end the axis of which lies at a substantial angle to the axis of said holder and-Which is adapted to enclose and support the end of a collapsible container with its discharge opening pressed in sealing registry with the similarly shaped walls adjacent the discharge opening of said nozzle.

8. A dispensing device for use in dispensing and distributing the fluent contents of an elongated collapsible container, said device comprising a one-piece elongated hollow holder of crescent shape in cross section adapted to be grasped within the hand for the application of pressure against a collapsible tubular container supported therewithin, said holder having a converging dispensing nozzle projecting from one rim edge of said holder at one end thereof and adapted to enclose and support the end of a collapsible container with its discharge opening pressed in sealing registry with the discharge opening of said nozzle, and means integral with said holder positioned to engage said container and to hold thedischarge I end thereof against displacement from said nozzle as dispensing pressure isapplied to said container.

9. In the combination with ahand-grasped dispensing holder of the type having an open-sided tubular body constricted at one end to provide a dispensing nozzle with its axis inclined to the axis of said tubular body, that improvement which comprises a readily detachable collapsible dispensing container sealed full of fluent material and insertable into said holder with the severed, tip end thereof pressed against and in alignmentwith a dispensing nozzle formed in the end of said holder, said container comprising a thin walled tubular body of flexible plastic material sealed closed at one end along a seam inclined to the axis of the container and otherwise free of reinforcing adapted to have its sharp tip end severed to provide a discharge opening positioned to register with the nozzle opening of a dispensing holder. p

10. A dispensing device for use in filling cracks and the like with a suitable fluent filler, said device comprising a one-piece rigid holder adapted to fit snugly against one side and about. one end of a collapsible tubular container having its dispensing end terminating on the bias, one end of said holder being formed with a dispensing nozzle shaped to seat ,snugly'the bias cut end of a collapsible container with the small tip end of the nozzle located at the foremost rim edge of said holder in position to receive and seat the foremost tip end of the bias cut collapsible container. I V

11. A dispensing device as defined in claim 10 characterized in that said holder includes means on the side thereof disposed opposite said dispensing nozzle for receiving and engaging over the portion of the bias cut of a tubular container to hold the same within said dispensing tip thereof pressed against the interior walls of said dispensing nozzle during application of pressure to the rearward portion of the container.

thereof, said device comprising an elongated rigid member shaped to fit within the hand and open along one side to receive a collapsible container of the type adapted to dispense from one end corner thereof, one end of said device being closed except for a dispensing nozzle in one rim edge, said closed end including means opposite said dispensing nozzle adapted to engage snugly over the adjacent end portion of a collapsible container and hold the dispensing opening of the container pressing against the interior wallsof said dispensing nozzle when pressure is applied to the side walls of the container.

13. A dispensing device for use with collapsible containers, said device being formed to fit over one end of a collapsible container to dispense the contents thereof through a dispensing nozzle fitting snugly over a nozzle.- like protuberance formed olf center from the longitudinal axis of the container with the axis of the dispensing nozzle disposed at an angle to the axis of the container, and means at the dispensing end of said device adapted to interlock with the dispensing end of a collapsible container as pressure is applied to rearward portions thereof to hold the container assembled to said, device with its nozzle-like'protuberance seated snugly within said dispensing nozzle notwithstanding the application of pressure to the container. I

14. A collapsible container sealed closed with a charge of fluent material adapted to take a set when exposed to air, said container being adapted to be inserted in a handgrasped dispensing holder and to be squeezed to dispense the fluid contents thereof into a cavity desired to be closed, said container comprising an elongated tubular body of flexible plastic material charged with fluent material which takes a set when exposed to air, said tubular container being sealed closed at its ends, one

12. A dispensing device for use in dispensing the con-- tents of a collapsible container from one end corner end of said container being sealed closed along a seam extending transversely thereof and inclined to the longitudinal axis of the container to provide a closed pointed tip end adapted to be converted into a dispensing nozzle for said fluent material when the tip thereof is cut away, the axis of said dispensing nozzle being inclined away from the axis of the body of the container and being for-med entirely by said flexible plastic material and the end closure seam of the container.

15. A combined container and dispenser for fluent material, said container having an elongated tubular body of a size suitable for grasping and holding in the palm of theusers hand and being formed of thin-walled impervious plastic material capable of being heat fused together and immune to attack by the container contents,

said body being closed at one end and charged with References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 317,641 Grout May 12, 1885 1,433,167 Worden Oct. 24, 1922 1,450,055 Trumbull Mar. 27, 1923 2,257,823 Stokes Oct. 7, 1941 2,430,995 Roos Nov. 18, 1947 2,566,533 Poux Sept. 4, 1951 2,576,542 Schoen Nov. 27, 1951 2,663,461 Brown Dec. 22, 1953 2,769,578 Johnson Nov. 6, 1956 

